Why Your Adtran TA Won’t Route * Codes to DNIS (And How to Fix It)

Intro:
Ever tried to make a * code like *98 route through DNIS on an Adtran TA and hit a brick wall? I did—and after scouring the internet for an answer, I came up empty. So I tore it apart myself, and here’s the straight truth.

The Problem:

• Subscriber dials *98 expecting voicemail.
• DNIS entry exists, but the call dies.
• Nothing in the docs screams why.

The Reason:

• Adtran treats * codes as feature access codes, not digits to feed into DNIS.
• With Spre Map Local, the box eats the *98 before DNIS ever sees it.
• That’s why your DNIS entries look fine but never trigger.

The Fix:

• Flip Spre Map from Local to Network.
• Create a DNIS entry translating *98 → full 10-digit voicemail number.
• Now *98 passes through, DNIS rewrites it, and the call completes.

The Caveat:
When you move Spre Map to Network, the Adtran’s built-in star code map stops working. That means internal features tied to those codes will no longer function. If you rely on the TA’s native *xx features, you need to replicate or reassign them before making the switch. Otherwise, you’ll fix one problem and create another.

Takeaway:
Star codes will never work with DNIS when Spre Map is set to Local. If you want *98 (or any other *xx code) to hit DNIS, you must set Spre Map to Network. Simple once you know it—but nobody spells it out.